Whether you’re a member of a large athletic club, or you prefer sweating it out in a small, local studio, cleaning yoga mats should be a priority for all yogis and the facilities where they practice. Cleaning yoga mats is especially important for studios and gyms with shared equipment due to the bacteria that can be transferred back and forth between yogis. While cleaning shared yoga mats is important, it’s also good to clean personal yoga mats to avoid transmitting infectious microorganisms to yourself.
Cleaning Yoga Mats
As with any shared piece of gym equipment or fitness mat, using a disinfecting cleaner will help prevent the spread of harmful germs.
- Using soap and water only isn’t good enough when cleaning yoga mats
- Use a liquid disinfectant that also contains a detergent or else you’ll just be spreading the bacteria around
- Hose down your yoga mat outside or allow it to soak in a bathtub using a disinfecting cleaner that includes detergent
- Rinse and allow it to air dry
- If you don’t have time, or want to clean yoga mats after each use, choose an anti-bacterial disinfectant stored in a trigger sprayer that can be applied and wiped off easily
While the practice itself may be cleansing, yoga mats are much dirtier than you would anticipate. In yoga studios and gyms, germs can be picked up from other people’s feet and from sweat. Shared yoga mats contain the sweat of many other yogis before you, who may or may not have cleaned it after their class.
Disinfect shared yoga mats before and after each use to help prevent the spread of bacteria in gyms and fitness centers. As long as you wipe both personal and shared mats down using a disinfectant with detergent designed for human use, you should be able to prevent the spread of bacteria. Gyms and yoga studios should regularly clean shared yoga mats, as a necessary precaution.
Clean Break offers a Facility Disinfectant that can be used in a trigger sprayer, with a sponge, rag or mop. The Facility Disinfectant is perfect for cleaning yoga mats. The concentrate can be mixed with water and used to clean shared mats all at once, or placed in trigger spray bottles for class attendees to use to sanitize their mats before and after class.